Using a Behavioral Intervention to Improve Performance of a Women’s College Lacrosse Team

Abstract

This study examined the use of prompting and an interdependent group negative reinforcement contingency to improve performance of 12 collegiate women's lacrosse players. The team coaches wanted players to "name passes," defined as saying the name of a player who should catch the ball at least 1 s before the catch. The intervention was evaluated using an A-B-A-B design, and results indicated that prompting and negative reinforcement (removing sprints at the end of practice for desired performance) were successful for improving names on passes. Players rated the intervention as acceptable, but only 7 out of 12 thought it should continue to be used in future practices.